Biological object detector, vehicle seat occupancy detector, and seat belt non-wearing warning system

ABSTRACT

A heat flux sensor is installed in such a way that heat flux emanating from a biological object present at a predetermined position is detectable. It is determined whether or not a biological object is present at the predetermined position by comparing sensing results of the heat flux sensor with determination criteria. The determination criteria is preset according to heat flux that can be sensed when a biological object is present at the predetermined position. When the sensing results of the heat flux sensor satisfy the determination criteria, in other words, when the heat flux sensed by the heat flux sensor is the heat flux emanating from a biological object, it is determined that a biological object is present at the predetermined position. Consequently, it is possible to realize accurate detection of a biological object.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a biological object detector using aheat flux sensor, a vehicle seat occupancy detector, and a seat beltnon-wearing warning system.

BACKGROUND ART

There are known biological object detectors which sense a temperature bymeans of an infrared sensor or the like and determine whether or notthere is a biological object at a predetermined position, on the basisof the sensed temperature (e.g., see Patent Document 1).

Further, there are known vehicle seat occupancy detectors used for seatbelt non-wearing warning systems. Such a seat occupancy detector sensesa weight applied to a seating surface of a seat and determines whetheror not an occupant is seated on the seat, on the basis of the sensedweight.

PRIOR ART LITERATURE Patent Literature

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. JP4859926B2

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, when a known biological object detector as mentioned above isused, there is a probability of incorrectly detecting a physical objectas a biological object. Specifically, when a physical object of a hightemperature is present at a predetermined position, the sensedtemperature exceeds a predetermined temperature and thus the physicalobject of the high temperature is erroneously detected as a biologicalobject. Moreover, when a vehicle seat occupancy detector as mentionedabove is used, there is a probability of erroneously detecting aphysical object as an occupant. Specifically, when a heavy physicalobject is placed on a seat, the sensed weight exceeds a predeterminedweight and thus the heavy physical object is erroneously detected as anoccupant.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems andmainly aims to realize accurate detection of a biological object.

Means for Solving the Problems

A biological object detector according to the present invention includesa heat flux sensor and a determining means. The heat flux sensor isinstalled in a place where heat flux emanating from a biological objectpresent at a predetermined position is detectable. The determining meansdetermines whether or not a biological object is present at thepredetermined position by comparing sensing results of the heat fluxsensor with determination criteria. The determination criteria arepreset according to heat flux that can be sensed when a biologicalobject is present at the predetermined position.

A vehicle seat occupancy detector according to the present inventionincludes a heat flux sensor and a seat occupancy determining means. Theheat flux sensor is installed in a place in a vehicle seat where heatflux emanating from an occupant seated on the seat is detectable. Theseat occupancy determining means determines whether or not an occupantis seated on the vehicle seat by comparing sensing results of the heatflux sensor with determination criteria. The determination criteria arepreset according to heat flux that can be sensed when an occupant isseated on the vehicle seat.

In general, the sensing results of a heat flux sensor differ betweenwhen heat flux emanating from a biological object is sensed and whenheat flux emanating from a physical object is sensed. For example, whenheat flux emanating from a biological object is compared with heat fluxemanating from a physical object of a high temperature, there aredifferences in the heat flux magnitude, the heat flux change with timeand the like.

Therefore, the biological object detector and the vehicle seat occupancydetector according to the present invention each make a determination onthe basis of a comparison between sensing results of the heat fluxsensor and determination criteria, thereby accurately detecting thepresence of a biological object or an occupant.

In the biological object detector and the vehicle seat occupancydetector according to the present invention, the heat flux sensor has astructure in which a plurality of first and second via holes are formedin an insulating base member made of a thermoplastic resin so as topenetrate the insulating base member in a thickness direction thereof,first and second connecting members formed of different metals arerespectively embedded in the first and second via holes, and the firstand second connecting members are alternately connected in series.Further, at least one of the metals forming the first and secondconnecting members is a sintered alloy obtained by sintering a pluralityof metal atoms in a state of maintaining a crystal structure of themetal atoms. As a result, it is possible to increase an electromotiveforce generated in the first and second connecting members that arealternately connected in series, thereby ensuring high sensitivity ofthe heat flux sensor.

Accordingly, with the use of the highly-sensitive heat flux sensor, thebiological object detector and the vehicle seat occupancy detectoraccording to the present invention are capable of more accuratelydetecting the presence of a biological object or an occupant.

Reference signs in parentheses of respective means recited in the claimsof the present invention show correlation with the specific means inembodiments described below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicleseat occupancy detector according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 includes schematic diagrams of a vehicle seat 1 of FIG. 1, where(a) illustrates a state before occupant's seating, (b) illustrates astate during occupant's seating, and (c) illustrates a state afteroccupant's seating and leaving the seat.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a heat flux sensor of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line V-V of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 includes schematic diagrams illustrating manufacturing steps ofthe heat flux sensor.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a control process performed by acontrol unit 20 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between heatflux flowing through the vehicle seat 1 and time, in each state wherethe vehicle seat 1 is yet to be seated (state 1), currently seated(state 2), and vacant after being seated (state 3) by an occupant.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating a human body presence determinationprocess of FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a first threshold qth1, asecond threshold qth2, a third threshold qth3 and a fourth thresholdqth4 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of anabnormal health condition detecting system according to a secondembodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described withreference to the drawings. In addition, in the following embodiments,identical reference signs are assigned to mutually identical orequivalent components.

First Embodiment

In the present embodiment, a biological object detector of the presentinvention is applied to a vehicle seat occupancy detector used for aseat belt non-wearing warning system. In the present embodiment, a seatbelt non-wearing warning system for a front passenger seat of a vehiclewill be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the seat belt non-wearing warning system mainlyincludes a heat flux sensor 10 provided in a vehicle seat 1, a controlunit 20, a seat belt buckle switch 1 c, and an indicator lamp and abuzzer both of which are not shown.

As shown in FIG. 2(a), the heat flux sensor 10 is installed inside aseat portion 1 a of the vehicle seat portion 1. As shown in FIG. 2(b),the heat flux sensor 10 senses heat flux passing through the heat fluxsensor 10 in the thickness direction thereof. When an occupant is seatedon the vehicle seat 1, the heat flux sensor 10 senses the heat fluxemanating from the occupant toward the seat portion 1 a. In this way,the heat flux sensor 10 is disposed at a position where it is possibleto sense the heat flux emanating from the buttocks of the occupantseated on the vehicle seat 1 toward the inside of the seat portion 1 a.

As shown in FIGS. 3-5, the heat flux sensor 10 is an integration of aninsulating base member 100, a front surface protective member 110 and aback surface protective member 120. Inside the integrated body, firstand second connecting members 130 and 140 are alternately connected inseries. Hereinafter, the structure of the heat flux sensor 10 will bedescribed in detail. In addition, for the sake of ease of understanding,the front surface protective member 110 is omitted from FIG. 3.Moreover, though FIG. 3 is not a cross-sectional view, the first andsecond connecting members 130 and 140 are hatched for the sake of easeof understanding.

In the present embodiment, the insulating base member 100 is constitutedof a planar rectangular film of thermoplastic resin such as polyetherether ketone (PEEK), polyether imide (PEI) or a liquid crystal polymer(LCP). The insulating base member 100 is formed in a staggered patternto alternately arrange a plurality of first and second via holes 101 and102 penetrating therethrough in the thickness direction.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the first and second via holes101 and 102 are each formed into a cylindrical shape to have a constantdiameter from a front surface 100 a to a back surface 100 b of theinsulating base member 100. Alternatively, these via holes may be eachformed into a tapered shape whose diameter decreases from the frontsurface 100 a to the back surface 100 b. In contrast, these via holesmay be each formed into a tapered shape whose diameter decreases fromthe back surface 100 b to the front surface 100 a. Otherwise, these viaholes may be each formed into a rectangular cylindrical shape.

The first via holes 101 have the respective first connecting members 130arranged therein, while the second via holes 102 have the respectivesecond connecting members 140 arranged therein. That is, the first andsecond connecting members 130 and 140 are alternately arranged in theinsulating base member 100.

As above, the first and second connecting members 130 and 140 arerespectively arranged in the first and second via holes 101 and 102.Therefore, it is possible to arrange the first and second connectingmembers 130 and 140 at a high density by suitably setting the number,size and intervals of the first and second via holes 101 and 102. As aresult, it is possible to increase the electromotive voltage, therebyensuring high sensitivity of the heat flux sensor 10.

The first connecting members 130 and the second connecting members 140are formed of different metals to exhibit the Seebeck effect. Forexample, the first connecting members 130 are each formed of a metalcompound; the metal compound is obtained by solid-phase sintering aBi—Sb—Te alloy powder for constituting a P-type semiconductor so as tomaintain the crystal structure of a plurality of metal atoms before thesintering. The second connecting members 140 are each formed of a metalcompound; the metal compound is obtained by solid-phase sintering aBi—Te alloy powder for constituting an N-type semiconductor so as tomaintain the crystal structure of a plurality of metal atoms before thesintering. That is, each of the metals forming the first and secondconnecting members 130 and 140 is a sintered alloy that is obtained bysintering a plurality of metal atoms with the crystal structure of themetal atoms maintained. Consequently, it is possible to increase theelectromotive voltage generated in the first and second connectingmembers 130 and 140 that are alternately and serially connected, therebyensuring high sensitivity of the heat flux sensor 10. Thus, in thepresent embodiment, with the use of the highly-sensitive heat fluxsensor, it is possible to accurately detect a biological object.

On the front surface 100 a of the insulating base member 100, there isarranged the front surface protective member 110 that is constituted ofa planar rectangular film of a thermoplastic resin such as polyetherether ketone (PEEK), polyether imide (PEI) or a liquid crystal polymer(LCP). The planar shape of the front surface protective member 110 hasthe same size as that of the insulating base member 100. On one surface110 a of the front surface protective member 110 facing the insulatingbase member 100, there are formed a plurality of front surface patterns111 so as to be spaced from one another; the front surface patterns 111are obtained by patterning a copper foil or the like. Moreover, each ofthe front surface patterns 111 is properly electrically connected to thefirst and second connecting members 130 and 140.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, taking one first connecting member 130and one second connecting member 140 adjacent to each other as one pair150, the first and second connecting members 130 and 140 of each pair150 are connected to the same front surface pattern 111. That is, thefirst and second connecting members 130 and 140 of each pair 150 areelectrically connected to each other via the front surface pattern 111.In addition, in the present embodiment, one first connecting member 130and one second connecting member 140 adjacent to each other along thelongitudinal direction (right-left direction in FIG. 4) of theinsulating base member 100 are taken as one pair 150.

On the back surface 100 b of the insulating base member 100, there isarranged the back surface protective member 120 of a planar rectangularshape which is constituted of a film of a thermoplastic resin such aspolyether ether ketone (PEEK), polyether imide (PEI) or a liquid crystalpolymer (LCP). The back surface protective member 120 has a greaterlength in the longitudinal direction of the insulating base member 100than the insulating base member 100. The back surface protective member120 is arranged on the back surface 100 b of the insulating base member100 so that both end portions of the back surface protective member 120protrude from the insulating base member 100 in the longitudinaldirection.

On one surface 120 a of the back surface protective member 120 facingthe insulating base member 100, there are formed a plurality of backsurface patterns 121 so as to be spaced from one another; the backsurface patterns 121 are obtained by patterning a copper foil or thelike. Moreover, each of the back surface patterns 121 is properlyelectrically connected to the first and second connecting members 130and 140.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, for two pairs 150 adjacent to eachother in the longitudinal direction of the insulating base member 100,the first connecting member 130 of one of the two pairs 150 and thesecond connecting member 140 of the other of the two pairs 150 areconnected to the same back surface pattern 121. That is, the first andsecond connecting members 130 and 140 are electrically connected via thesame back surface pattern 121 straddling the pairs 150.

As shown in FIG. 5, at an outer edge of the insulating base member 100,the first and second connecting members 130 and 140 adjacent to eachother along a width direction (up-down direction in FIG. 3)perpendicular to the longitudinal direction are connected to the sameback surface pattern 121. Specifically, the adjacent first and secondconnecting members 130 and 140 are connected to the same back surfacepattern 121 so that a connection body is folded in the longitudinaldirection of the insulating base member 100; the connection body isformed by serially connecting the first and second connecting members130 and 140 via the front surface patterns 111 and the back surfacepatterns 121.

At both ends of the connection body that is formed by seriallyconnecting all of the first and second connecting members 130 and 140,there are respectively arranged two back surface patterns 121. As shownin FIGS. 3 and 4, end portions of the two back surface patterns 121 areformed so as to be exposed from the insulating base member 100. Theseend portions of the back surface patterns 121 function as terminals tobe connected to the control unit 20.

The basic configuration of the heat flux sensor 10 according to thepresent embodiment has so far been described. The heat flux sensor 10outputs, to the control unit 20, a sensor signal (electromotive voltage)according to the heat flux passing through the heat flux sensor 10 inthe thickness direction. A change in the heat flux causes a change inthe electromotive voltage generated in the first and second connectingmembers 130 and 140 that are alternately connected in series. Inaddition, the thickness direction of the heat flux sensor 10 coincideswith the stacking direction of the insulating base member 100, the frontsurface protective member 110 and the back surface protective member120.

With reference to FIG. 6, a method of manufacturing the heat flux sensor10 will be described.

Firstly, as shown in FIG. 6 (a), the insulating base member 100 isprepared and the plurality of first via holes 101 are formed by means ofdrilling, a laser, or the like.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6 (b), each of the first via holes 101 is filledwith a first electrically-conductive paste 131. As a method (apparatus)for filling the first via holes 101 with the first conductive paste 131,the method (apparatus) described in Japanese Patent Application No.2010-050356 filed by the present applicant may be used.

As briefly explained below, the insulating base member 100 is placed ona holding table, not shown, via an absorbent paper 160 in such a waythat the back surface 100 b faces the absorbent paper 160. Then, whilethe first conductive paste 131 is melted, the first via holes 101 arefilled with the first conductive paste 131. Consequently, most oforganic solvent in the first conductive paste 131 is absorbed by theabsorbent paper 160 to densely arrange the alloy powder in the first viaholes 101.

It is only necessary for the absorbent paper 160 to be made from amaterial capable of absorbing the organic solvent of the firstconductive paste 131; ordinary high-quality paper or the like istherefore employed as the absorbent paper 160. The first conductivepaste 131 is obtained by adding an organic solvent having a meltingpoint of 43° C., such as paraffin, to powder of a Bi—Sb—Te alloy inwhich metal atoms maintain a predetermined crystal structure. Therefore,in filling the first conductive paste 131, the front surface 100 a ofthe insulating base member 100 is heated to approximately 43° C.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6 (c), the plurality of second via holes 102 areformed in the insulating base member 100 by means of drilling, a laser,or the like. The second via holes 102 are formed so as to be alternatelyarranged with the first via holes 101 to make up a staggered patterntogether with the first via holes 101 as described above.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6 (d), each of the second via holes 102 is filledwith a second conductive paste 141. This step may be performed in asimilar manner to the step shown in FIG. 6 (b).

That is, the insulating base member 100 is again placed on the holdingtable, not shown, via the absorbent paper 160 in such a way that theback surface 100 b faces the absorbent paper 160, followed by fillingthe second via holes 102 with the second conductive paste 141.Consequently, most of organic solvent in the second conductive paste 141is absorbed by the absorbent paper 160 to densely arrange the alloypowder in the second via holes 102.

The second conductive paste 141 is obtained by adding an organic solventhaving a melting point at normal temperature, such as terpineol, topowder of a Bi—Te alloy in which metal atoms different from thoseconstituting the first conductive paste 131 maintain a predeterminedcrystal structure. That is, as the organic solvent constituting thesecond conductive paste 141, one having a melting point lower than thatof the organic solvent constituting the first conductive paste 131 isused. In filling the second conductive paste 141, the front surface 100a of the insulating base member 100 is kept at normal temperature. Inother words, the second conductive paste 141 is filled in in a statewhere the organic solvent contained in the first conductive paste 131 issolidified. In this way, the second conductive paste 141 is preventedfrom mixing into the first via holes 101.

In addition, the “state where the organic solvent contained in the firstconductive paste 131 is solidified” denotes the organic solventremaining in the first via holes 101 without being absorbed by theabsorbent paper 160 at the step shown in FIG. 6 (b).

At steps separate from the above steps, copper foils or the like areformed, as shown in FIG. 6 (e) and FIG. 6 (f), on those surfaces 110 aand 120 a of the front surface protective member 110 and the backsurface protective member 120 which are to be opposed to the insulatingbase member 100. Then, the copper foils are properly patterned toprepare the front surface protective member 110 on which the pluralityof front surface patterns 111 are formed so as to be spaced from eachother, and the back surface protective member 120 on which the pluralityof back surface patterns 121 are formed so as to be spaced from eachother.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 6 (g), the back surface protective member120, the insulating base member 100, and the front surface protectivemember 110 are sequentially stacked to constitute a stacked body 170.

In the present embodiment, the back surface protective member 120 has alength in the longitudinal direction greater than that of the insulatingbase member 100. The back surface protective member 120 is arranged sothat both the end portions thereof in the longitudinal directionprotrude from the insulating base member 100.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6 (h), the stacked body 170 is placed between apair of pressing plates, not shown, and pressed from both the upper andlower sides in the stacking direction while being heated in a vacuumstate, thereby being integrated. Specifically, in the integration of thestacked body 170, the first and second conductive pastes 131 and 141 aresolid-phase sintered to form the first and second connecting members 130and 140, and the first and second connecting members 130 and 140 areconnected to the front surface patterns 111 and the back surfacepatterns 121 while being heated and pressed.

Although not particularly limited, in integrating the stacked body 170,a cushion material, such as rock wool paper, may be placed between thestacked body 170 and the pressing plates. As above, the heat flux sensor10 is manufactured.

The seat belt buckle switch 1 c is a detecting means that detects anon-wearing state of a seat belt 1 b. The seat belt buckle switch 1 c isturned on when the seat belt 1 b is worn and outputs a switch signal tothe control unit 20. An indicator lamp and a buzzer are notifying meansfor notifying an occupant when the seat belt 1 b is not worn.

The control unit 20 is an electronic control unit configured with, forexample, a microcomputer, a memory as a storing means, and theperipheral circuits. The control unit 20 performs predeterminedarithmetic processing in accordance with a preset program to control theactivation of the indicator lamp and the buzzer.

Specifically, the control unit 20 performs a control process illustratedin FIG. 7. The control process is performed when an ignition switch oran engine start switch is turned on or a vehicle is traveling at apredetermined speed or higher. The control process is repeated atpredetermined time intervals. The control steps shown in FIG. 7constitute various function-realizing means provided in the control unit20.

First, the control unit 20 performs a human body presence determinationprocess that determines the presence of an occupant (human body) seatedon the vehicle seat 1 (step S1). Step S1 corresponds to the determiningmeans and the seat occupancy determining means recited in the claims ofthe present invention. Details of the process will be described later.

Then, if an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1 and thus it isdetermined in the human body presence determination process that a humanbody is present, in other words, if a human body is detected, it isfurther determined whether or not the occupant is wearing the seat belt(steps S2 and S3). The determination is made on the basis of a switchsignal outputted from the seat belt buckle switch 1 c. Step S3corresponds to the seat belt wearing determining means recited in theclaims of the present invention.

On the other hand, if no occupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1 andthus it is determined in the human body presence determination processthat no human body is present, in other words, if no human body isdetected, the process is terminated without performing steps S3 and S4.Then, the control process shown in FIG. 7 is iterated.

If it is determined that the occupant is not wearing the seat belt 1 b,an activation instruction signal is outputted to the notifying means towarn the occupant of the non-wearing of the seat belt (step S4).Specifically, the buzzer generates a warning sound and the indicatorlamp is lit or blinked. Step S4 corresponds to the warning means recitedin the claims of the present invention. On the other hand, if it isdetermined that the occupant is wearing the seat belt 1 b, the processis terminated without performing step S4. Then, the control processshown in FIG. 7 is iterated.

As above, in the present system, if an occupant is seated on the vehicleseat 1 but the occupant is not wearing the seat belt 1 b, the occupantis warned accordingly by the notifying means.

Next, the human body presence determination process performed at step S1will be described.

First, referring to FIG. 8, heat flux detected by the heat flux sensor10 is described in terms of the states before, during and after theoccupant's seating on the vehicle seat 1. States 1, 2, and 3 in FIG. 8correspond, respectively, to the state before the occupant's seating asshown in FIG. 2 (a), the state during the occupant's seating as shown inFIG. 2 (b), and the state after the occupant's seating and leaving theseat as shown in FIG. 2 (c). FIG. 8 shows the case where the bodytemperature of the occupant is higher than the temperature of thevehicle seat 1.

As indicated by the solid line in FIG. 8, no heat flux will be detected,or heat flux is close to zero in the state 1 before the occupant'sseating. In the state 2 during the occupant's seating, heat flux isdetected immediately after seating and the detected heat flux decreaseswith time. In this case, since a human body constantly generates heat,heat flux does not become zero and thus heat flux is constantlydetected. The detected heat flux has a substantially constant magnitude.In the state 3 after the occupant's seating and leaving the seat, asmall amount of heat from the human body is left on the seat surfacefrom which the heat flux is detected but the detected heat fluxdecreases with time and becomes close to zero.

In contrast, when a physical object temporarily having a hightemperature is placed on the vehicle seat 1, the heat flux emanatingfrom the physical object decreases with time towards zero, as indicatedby the broken line in FIG. 8, immediately after being placed on thevehicle seat 1. In this case, when the temperature of the physicalobject is different from the temperature of a human body, the magnitudeof the detected heat flux is different from the heat flux emanating fromthe human body. When the thermal conductivity is different between thephysical object and the human body, the rate of change (gradient) ofheat flux with time will be different.

Thus, comparing the heat flux emanating from a human body with the heatflux emanating from a physical object of a high temperature, themagnitudes of the heat fluxes and the changes with time of the heatfluxes are different.

Therefore, in the human body presence determination process of step S1,it is determined whether or not the detected heat flux is the heat fluxemanating from a biological object, and if the detected heat flux is theheat flux emanating from a biological object, it is determined thatthere is a human body. In other words, the sensing results of the heatflux sensor 10 are compared with determination criteria preset accordingto the heat flux that can be detected when an occupant is seated on thevehicle seat 1. As a result of the comparison, if the sensing resultssatisfy the determination criteria, it is determined that a human bodyis present.

For example, as the sensing results of the heat flux sensor 10, atendency of change in heat flux with time is determined on the basis ofthe sensor signal intermittently or continuously inputted from the heatflux sensor 10. The tendency of change in heat flux referred to hereinis a curve indicating the change of heat flux as shown in FIG. 8. On theother hand, as the determination criteria, a map is used which indicatesa range of heat flux variation with time in the case where an occupantis seated. The map is prepared in advance by experiments or the like.

In addition, as indicated by the one-dot chain line and the two-dotchain line in FIG. 8, the heat fluxes from human bodies vary dependingon individuals; the heat flux from the same individual also variesdepending on the health condition of the individual. In consideration ofthe above, the determination criteria used for determination of thepresence or absence of a human body is set. If there is a match betweenthe obtained tendency of change in heat flux and the map, it isdetermined that a human body is present on the vehicle seat 1.

Moreover, for example, as the sensing results of the heat flux sensor10, the heat flux is calculated immediately after the start of the heatflux detection (time instant t0) and after first and secondpredetermined times from the start of the heat flux detection (timeinstants t1, t2) on the basis of the sensor signal intermittently orcontinuously inputted from the heat flux sensor 10. On the other hand,as the determination criteria, as shown in FIG. 10, ranges of possiblevalues of the heat flux in the case where an occupant is seated on thevehicle seat 1 are used. These ranges are respectively determinedimmediately after the start of the heat flux detection (time instant t0)and after the first and second predetermined times from the start of theheat flux detection (time instants t1, t2).

Here, the determination criteria shown in FIG. 10 is described. Thecurve indicated by the solid line in FIG. 10 corresponds to the state 2indicated by the solid line in FIG. 8. In the case where an occupant isseated, the time instant immediately after the start of the heat fluxdetection is denoted by t0, and the time instants after the first andsecond predetermined times from the start of the heat flux detection arerespectively denoted by t1 and t2. In the case where an occupant isseated, the time instants after the first and second predetermined timescorrespond to the time period during which the heat flux sensed by theheat flux sensor 10 becomes substantially constant after being loweredfrom the value immediately after the start of the detection. Moreover, afirst range of the heat flux detectable at the time instant t0 is set tobe not higher than qth1 and not lower than qth2; a second range of theheat flux detectable at the time instants t1 and t0 is set to be nothigher than qth3 and not lower than qth4. In addition, as indicated bythe one-dot chain line and the two-dot chain line in FIG. 8, the heatfluxes from human bodies vary depending on individuals; the heat fluxfrom the same individual also varies depending on the health conditionof the individual. In consideration of the above, the first and secondranges are set.

Using the determination criteria shown in FIG. 10, the control unit 2performs the control process shown in FIG. 9. The control steps shown inFIG. 9 constitutes various function-realizing means provided in thecontrol unit 2.

At step S11, the sensor signal (voltage value) outputted from the heatflux sensor 10 is read in, and it is determined whether or not thevoltage value V0 is higher than a threshold Vth. By this, it isdetermined whether or not heat flux has been sensed by the heat fluxsensor 10. If an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1 or a physicalobject of a high temperature is placed on the vehicle seat 1, anelectromotive voltage is generated in the heat flux sensor 10. In thiscase, the control unit 2 makes an affirmative determination (YES) andthe process proceeds to step S12. On the other hand, if neither anoccupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1, nor a physical object of ahigh temperature is placed on the vehicle seat 1, no electromotivevoltage is generated in the heat flux sensor 10. In this case, thecontrol unit 2 makes a negative determination (NO) and the processproceeds to step S19. At step S19, it is determined that no human bodyis present; then the process proceeds to step S2.

At step S12, the heat flux is calculated on the basis of the voltagevalue V0 read in at step S11. The heat flux at this time is taken as theheat flux q0 at the time instant t0.

Next, at step S13, it is determined whether or not the heat flux q0 iswithin the first range. That is, it is determined whether or not theheat flux q0 is not higher than the first threshold qth1 and not lowerthan the second threshold qth2 (qth1≧q0≧qth2). If the heat flux q0 isout of the first range, it means that no occupant is seated on thevehicle seat 1. Accordingly, a negative determination is made (NO) atstep S13, and the process proceeds to step S19. At step S19, it isdetermined that no human body is present; then the process proceeds tostep S2. On the other hand, if an affirmative determination is made(YES) at step S13, the process proceeds to step S14.

At step S14, the sensor signal is read in at the time instant t1 afterthe elapse of the first predetermined time from the time instant t0. Onthe basis of the read-in sensor signal, the heat flux q1 at the timeinstant t1 is calculated.

Next, at step S15, it is determined whether or not the heat flux q1 iswithin the second range. That is, it is determined whether or not theheat flux q1 is not higher than the third threshold qth3 and not lowerthan the fourth threshold qth4 (qth3≧q1≧qth4). If the heat flux q1 isout of the second range, it means that no occupant is seated on thevehicle seat 1. Accordingly, a negative determination is made (NO) atstep S15, and the process proceeds to step S19. At step S19, it isdetermined that no human body is present; then the process proceeds tostep S2. On the other hand, if an affirmative determination is made(YES) at step S15, the process proceeds to step S16.

At step S16, the sensor signal is read in at the time instant t2 afterthe elapse of the second predetermined time from the time instant t0. Onthe basis of the read-in sensor signal, the heat flux q2 at the timeinstant t2 is calculated.

Next, at step S17, it is determined whether or not the heat flux q2 iswithin the second range. That is, it is determined whether or not theheat flux q2 is not higher than the third threshold qth3 and not lowerthan the fourth threshold qth4 (qth3≧q2≧qth4). The second range is thesame as the one used at step S15. This is because, as shown in FIG. 10,if an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1, the magnitude of theheat flux becomes substantially constant at a predetermined magnitudeafter the elapse of a predetermined time from the start of the seating.Accordingly, if the heat flux q2 is within the second range, it isunderstood that an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1. If the heatflux q2 is out of the second range, it is understood that no occupant isseated on the vehicle seat portion 1. Accordingly, if a negativedetermination is made (NO) at step S17, the process proceeds to stepS19. At step S19, it is determined that no human body is present; thenthe process proceeds to step S2. On the other hand, if an affirmativedetermination is made (YES) at step S17, the process proceeds to stepS18. At step S18, it is determined that a human body is present; thenthe process proceeds to step S2.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possibleto prevent a physical object of a high temperature from beingerroneously detected as a human body; thus it is possible to realizeaccurate detection of a human body. In addition, the magnitude of theheat flux sensed when an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat 1 variesdepending on the temperature of the vehicle seat 1. Therefore, it ispreferable to change the determination criteria in accordance with thetemperature of the vehicle seat 1.

In the heat flux sensor 10 of the present embodiment, the insulatingbase member 100, the front surface protective member 110, and the backsurface protective member 120 are each made of a thermoplastic resin andthus have flexibility. If a heat flux sensor without flexibility wasinstalled in the vehicle seat 1, unlike in the present embodiment,sitting comfort would be impaired. In contrast, since the heat fluxsensor 10 of the present embodiment has flexibility, sitting comfort isnot impaired.

Second Embodiment

In the present embodiment, a biological object detector of the presentinvention is applied to an abnormal health condition detecting system.The abnormality detecting system is configured to externally notify whenthe health conditions of a human body at home are determined to beabnormal.

As shown in FIG. 11, the abnormality detecting system mainly includes aplurality of heat flux sensors 10, a control unit 20, and a notifyingmeans, not shown.

The heat flux sensors 10 each have the same configuration as that of thefirst embodiment. The heat flux sensors 10 are installed in respectivephysical objects, including a bed 2 and a legless chair 3, which comeinto contact with a person in the daily life of the person at home.Although not shown, the physical objects coming into contact with aperson may include, besides the bed 2 and the legless chair 3, acushion, a door knob, a toilet seat and the like. The heat flux sensors10 each senses the heat flux emanating from a human body when the humanbody is located at a predetermined position, i.e. at the bed 2, thelegless chair 3 or the like. Each heat flux sensor 10 outputs, to thecontrol unit 20, a sensor signal according to the heat flux.

The control unit 20 performs a human body presence determination processsimilar to the one in the first embodiment for each of the plurality ofheat flux sensors 10 to determine the presence of a human body at thespot where the heat flux sensor 10 is installed. Then, on the basis ofthe determination results of each heat flux sensor 10, it is determinedwhether or not the health condition of a target person is abnormal. As aresult, if the health condition is determined to be abnormal, thenotifying means is activated. For example, the notifying means is acommunication device that externally transmits an e-mail notifying thatthe health condition of the target person is abnormal.

When the target person is healthy, the person moves around at home andthus a human body is detected by the respective heat flux sensors 10. Incontrast, when the health condition of the target person is abnormal,such as when the person becomes unable to leave the bed 2 or falls downon the floor, the person cannot move around at home. Therefore, only theheat flux sensor 10 installed in the bed 2 can detect a human body, ornone of the heat flux sensors 10 can detect a human body.

Accordingly, the control unit 20 determines, for example, whether or notthe number of the heat flux sensors 10 having sensed a human body is oneor less. When the number of the heat flux sensors 10 having sensed ahuman body is one or zero and this situation continues for apredetermined period of time, it is determined that abnormality hasoccurred. In this way, when the health condition of a human body at homeis abnormal, the situation can be externally notified accordingly.

In the present embodiment, the human body presence determination processsimilar to that in the first embodiment is performed. Consequently, itis possible to prevent a physical object of a high temperature frombeing erroneously detected as a human body; thus it is possible torealize accurate detection of a human body.

Moreover, the heat flux sensors 10 of the present embodiment eachinclude the insulating base member 100, the front surface protectivemember 110 and the back surface protective member 120, which are eachmade of a thermoplastic resin. Thus, the heat flux sensors 10 of thepresent embodiment have flexibility. Therefore, the heat flux sensors 10each can be suitably deformed in conformity with the shape of theinstallation location and thus can be installed in a variety of placesat home.

Other Embodiments

Some embodiments of the present invention have been described above.

However, the present invention should not be construed as being limitedto the above embodiments but may be implemented in various modes withinthe scope not departing from the spirit of the present invention.

(1) In the first embodiment, the heat flux sensor 10 is installed in theseat portion 1 a of the vehicle seat 1. Alternatively, the heat fluxsensor 10 may be installed in a backrest of the vehicle seat 1 as longas the heat flux from a seated occupant to the vehicle seat 1 can besensed.

(2) In the first embodiment, the biological object detector of thepresent invention is applied to the seat occupancy detector used in theseat belt non-wearing warning system. Alternatively, the biologicalobject detector may be applied to another vehicle seat occupancydetector which is used in, for example, a vehicle air conditioner toselectively blow conditioning air toward the seat on which an occupantis seated.

(3) In the embodiments described above, the presence of a human body isdetermined on the basis of the heat flux sensed by the heat flux sensor10. However, the sensed heat flux may be used for determining theconditions of a human body. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, the heatflux sensed from a human body exhibits different tendencies of change ina normal steady state (the solid line in FIG. 8) and in other states(the one-dot chain line and the two-dot chain line in FIG. 8).

The change in heat flux of a target person in a steady state isinvestigated in advance, and the tendency of the investigated change isused as determination criteria. Comparing the tendency of change in heatflux sensed by the heat flux sensor 10 with the determination criteria,the life/death state, the illness state and the drowsiness state of thetarget person can be detected.

(4) In the embodiments described above, the cases of detecting a humanbody have been described. However, biological objects other than humanbodies, such as pets represented by dogs and cats, can be detected aswell.

(5) In the embodiments described above, the place where the heat fluxsensor is installed is an object making contact with a biologicalobject. However, the place where the heat flux sensor is installed isnot limited to an object making contact with a biological object, butmay be a place away from a biological object as long as the heat fluxemanating from the biological object can be sensed in that place.

(6) In the embodiments described above, the heat flux is calculated bythe control unit 2 on the basis of the electromotive voltage (voltagevalue) generated in the heat flux sensor 10. Alternatively, the heatflux may be calculated on the basis of the current (current value)generated in the heat flux sensor 10. In short, the control unit 2 iscapable of detecting the heat flux on the basis of the electromotiveforce generated in the heat flux sensor 10.

(7) As the sensing results of the heat flux sensor 10, the aboveembodiments describe an example of using the tendency of change in heatflux with time, and an example of using the heat flux immediately afterthe start of the heat flux detection (t0) and after the first and secondpredetermined times from the start of the heat flux detection (t1 andt2). Alternatively, a voltage value or a current value of the electricpower generated in the heat flux sensor 10 may be used instead of theheat flux.

(8) In the embodiments described above, the metals forming the first andsecond connecting members 130 and 140 are a Bi—Sb—Te alloy and a Bi—Tealloy, respectively. However, other alloys may also be used. Further, inthe embodiments described above, both the metals forming the first andsecond connecting members 130 and 140 are sintered alloys obtained bysolid-phase sintering. Alternatively, at least one of the metals may bea sintered alloy obtained by solid-phase sintering. Thus, theelectromotive force can be increased and the heat flux sensor 10 canhave higher sensitivity, compared to the case where neither of themetals forming the first and second connecting members 130 and 140 issolid-phase sintered.

(9) The embodiments described above are relevant to each other and thuscan be combined appropriately, unless the combination is obviouslyimpossible. As a matter of course, in the embodiments described above,the components constituting the embodiments should not be construed asbeing necessarily essential, unless explicitly indicated as beingessential or unless obviously considered to be essential in principle.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE SIGNS

-   -   10 Heat flux sensor    -   20 Control unit    -   100 Insulating base member    -   101, 102 First and second via holes    -   130, 140 First and second connecting members

What is claimed is:
 1. A biological object detector comprising: a heatflux sensor installed in a place where heat flux emanating from abiological object present at a predetermined position is detectable; anda determining means for determining whether or not a biological objectis present at the predetermined position, wherein the heat flux sensorhas a structure in which a plurality of first and second via holes areformed in an insulating base member made of a thermoplastic resin so asto penetrate the insulating base member in a thickness directionthereof, first and second connecting members formed of different metalsare respectively embedded in the first and second via holes, and thefirst and second connecting members are alternately connected in series,at least one of the metals forming the first and second connectingmembers is a sintered alloy obtained by sintering a plurality of metalatoms in a state of maintaining a crystal structure of the metal atoms,and the determining means determines whether or not a biological objectis present at the predetermined position by comparing sensing results ofthe heat flux sensor with determination criteria, the determinationcriteria being preset according to heat flux that can be sensed when abiological object is present at the predetermined position.
 2. A vehicleseat occupancy detector comprising: a heat flux sensor installed in aplace in a vehicle seat where heat flux emanating from an occupantseated on the seat is detectable; and a seat occupancy determining meansfor determining whether or not an occupant is seated on the vehicleseat, wherein the heat flux sensor has a structure in which a pluralityof first and second via holes are formed in an insulating base membermade of a thermoplastic resin so as to penetrate the insulating basemember in a thickness direction thereof, first and second connectingmembers formed of different metals are respectively embedded in thefirst and second via holes, and the first and second connecting membersare alternately connected in series, at least one of the metals formingthe first and second connecting members is a sintered alloy obtained bysintering a plurality of metal atoms in a state of maintaining a crystalstructure of the metal atoms, and the seat occupancy determining meansdetermines whether or not an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat bycomparing sensing results of the heat flux sensor with determinationcriteria, the determination criteria being preset according to heat fluxthat can be sensed when an occupant is seated on the vehicle seat.
 3. Aseat belt non-wearing warning system, comprising: the vehicle seatoccupancy detector as set forth in claim 2; a seat belt wearingdetermining means for determining, when it is determined by the seatoccupancy determining means of the vehicle seat occupancy detector thatan occupant is seated on the vehicle seat, whether or not the occupantis wearing a seat belt; and a warning means for warning, when it isdetermined by the seat belt wearing determining means that the occupantis not wearing the seat belt, the occupant of the non-wearing of theseat belt.